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Wednesday, September 13, 2017, 15:15
Beijing: Move to distance Taiwan from Chinese culture to fail
By Xinhua
Wednesday, September 13, 2017, 15:15 By Xinhua

In this Oct 26, 2016 photo, An Fengshan, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, speaks at a press conference in Beijing, China. (CHEN YEHUA / XINHUA)

BEIJING – Any attempt to distance Taiwan from Chinese culture will not gain public support, a Chinese mainland spokesperson said Wednesday.

The mainland will continue to put forward policies and measures to facilitate the studying, internships, employment, entrepreneurship and life of Taiwan compatriots on the mainland 

An Fengshan, Spokesperson, Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council

An Fengshan, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, said at a press conference that a move proposed by Taiwan's education authority to reduce classical Chinese content in Chinese language textbooks for senior high schools was aimed at removing the imprint of Chinese culture from the island.

"Such attempts have always met with strong opposition from all walks of life in Taiwan," said An. "They will only do harm to the young generation in Taiwan and its society."

An said "Taiwan independence" forces were the single biggest obstacle to achieving peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait, and that Taiwan should abandon splittist ideas and return to the 1992 Consensus, which embodied the one-China principle.

READ MORE: Beijing urges DPP to give up 'Taiwan independence' stance

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the beginning of exchange between Taiwan and the Chinese mainland. Trade between the two sides for the first half of 2017 continued to rise, reaching US$87.49 billion, according to An.

"We have been actively promoting equal treatment between Taiwanese companies operating in the mainland and their mainland counterparts to help Taiwan compatriots share the development opportunities and fruits of the mainland," he said.

The economic and social development of the mainland provides broad space and prospects for exchange and cooperation across the Taiwan Strait, An said.

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He said that politically motivated actions that went against economic rules would only damage the interests of Taiwan and its businesses.

"The mainland will continue to put forward policies and measures to facilitate the studying, internships, employment, entrepreneurship and life of Taiwan compatriots on the mainland," he said.

Referring to recent help offered by a mainland medical team to a Taiwanese woman who fell severely ill in Chad, An said the mainland was willing to assist Taiwan compatriots wherever they met difficulties.

SPOKESMAN STRESSES ONE-CHINA PRINCIPLE

Taiwan's participation in activities held by international organizations should be based on the one-China principle, said An Fengshan.

He reiterated that the mainland's major policies towards Taiwan remain unchanged.

"We will continue to adhere to the '1992 Consensus' which embodies the one-China principle, ensure the common political foundation for peaceful development of cross-Strait relations, oppose 'Taiwan independence' and protect our sovereignty and territorial integrity," said the spokesperson.

Concerning Taiwan's participation in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit to be held in Vietnam in November, An said it should be handled in accordance with the one-China principle and the memorandum of understanding among members of the APEC.

Only by upholding the one-China principle can cross-Strait relations return to the path of peaceful development to the benefit of compatriots across the Taiwan Strait, he said.

Regarding concerns that Taiwan will develop nuclear weapons, An said he has not identified the source of the information, stressing that the mainland is firmly opposed to such ideas.

Responding to a question on the United States' plan to resupply its warships off the coast of Taiwan from 2018, An said that "we resolutely oppose any official contact and military links between the US and Taiwan."

The spokesman added that various activities will be held to mark the 30th anniversary of cross-Strait exchanges.

TAIWAN DEFENDANT’S TRIAL: ‘DUE PROCESS FOLLOWED’

The investigation and trial of Taiwan resident Lee Ming-che has been conducted in accordance with the law, An said at the press conference. 

The rights and interests of the defendant and his family had been fully protected, he said.

Any attempt to politically manipulate or use the case to smear the mainland's political and legal system would prove futile, said the spokesperson.

Lee was accused of subverting state power and stood trial Monday in a court in the city of Yueyang in Hunan Province. A defendant from the mainland, Peng Yuhua, faced the same charge during the open trial.

An said the defendants' families had been properly informed of the trial proceedings, and the court allowed Lee to meet with his mother and wife after the trial, as per the family's request.

Videos and reports of the trial were published on the official Weibo account of the Yueyang City Intermediate People's Court. A number of media organizations from the mainland and Taiwan covered the trial.

The verdict in the case will be announced at a later date.

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